I put another couple of Broadway Playbills in my wife’s notebook collection, and displayed the show tickets from last week in my glass wall box. Each colorful booklet lists the cast and their resumes, as well as the the song list next to all the ads. With SpongeBob SquarePants, the song “Best Day Ever” was performed with these lyrics:

“Mr. Sun came up and he smiled at me,
Said it’s gonna be a good one just wait
And see.
Jumped outta bed, and I ran outside,
Feeling so extra ecstatified,
It’s the best day ever (best day ever)
It’s the best day ever (best day ever).”

“I’m so busy got nothing to do,
Spent the last two hours just tying my shoe,
Every flower, every grain of sand,
Is reaching out to shake my hand,
It’s the best day ever (best day ever)
It’s the best day ever (best day ever)”

I didn’t exactly “jump” out of bed this morning, even after going to bed early. I was feeling the chills of another cold coming on accompanied with a scratchy throat and a fever. I had gained five pounds when I stepped on the scale, and had lung congestion problems that added to my morning run misery. The pilot on the hot water heater blew out, so there was limited hot water, and I had a dental appointment to make. By the time I arrived, my blood pressure was high, after fighting the downtown traffic. There were also other errands to run, and our schnauzer Tinker had another ear infection that required a trip to the veterinarian for medication. Vet.Pet.Debt. To make matters worse, my good friend called to tell me that the Cubs vs. Cardinals game that we have tickets for next month was moved from an afternoon game to an evening game. We have a 7 p.m. flight out of St. Louis, so we’ll need to make other arrangements. It was NOT the “Best Ever Day” of retirement to say the least! 

There have been plenty of great retirement days, so there’s little need for sympathy. However, with all our recent plane travel, while crammed next to sickly passengers, my immune system has been hard at work. I could feel the soreness in my throat during yesterday’s “fun run,” and surely the excess of wine at the Paul Simon concert the night before didn’t help the cause either. I needed “a bridge over troubled water,” and a glass or two of wine tonight, in conjunction with our “Meatless Monday” morel mushroom dinner, just might soothe the pain. I’m sure tomorrow will be better since “I’m busy with nothing to do.” I’m clearly ecstatified! It may very well be the “Best Retirement Day Ever!”